9 May 2024, The Hindu
In SC, Centre says it sends CBI to States for probes
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GS 2: Structure, organisation and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary
- The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to accept at face value the Centre’s claim that it has no control over the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), asking who else can send the premier investigating agency to States to investigate cases.
- “Who would be the authority to authorise the CBI to proceed to another State for investigation?” Justice Sandeep Mehta, a member of the two-judge Bench headed by Justice B.R. Gavai, asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre.
A chance to settle a constitutional clash
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GS 2: Indian Constitution: features, amendments, significant provisions
- Two questions of seminal importance are at stake in Property Owners Association vs State of Maharashtra, in which hearings recently concluded before a nine-judge Bench of the Supreme Court of India.
- First, what does the term “material resources of the community” used in Article 39(b) of the Constitution denote?
- Second, are laws made in furtherance of the goal stipulated in Article 39(b) — that is, legislation aimed at securing ownership of resources and distributing them to best subserve the common good — immunised from challenges premised on the fundamental rights to equality and freedom?
A sob story
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GS 3: Indian Economy (international trade)
- Nearly six months after the Centre prohibited onion exports citing runaway prices and supply concerns, it put them back in the ‘free’ category last Saturday, with the caveat of a minimum export price of $550 a tonne, and a 40% levy on top.
- This marked the second significant policy change on onion exports over a span of 10 days. On April 25, 2,000 tonnes of white onion exports were permitted, if certified by the Gujarat Horticulture Commissioner.
- Coming days before Gujarat’s Lok Sabha vote this Tuesday, the move triggered an outcry about preferential treatment from the neighbouring State’s farmers.
- In a press release, the Centre explained that “purely export oriented” white onions entail higher production costs, and nearly one lakh tonne of onion exports had also been allowed that would help Maharashtra, the country’s largest onion producer.
- This did not cut much ice — only a few thousand tonnes of onions had actually been shipped under that export window.
Giving primacy to human development
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GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilisation of resources, growth, development and employment
- The promise of development has emerged as a rallying point for political parties for the elections.
- Taking stock of the achievements of the past few years, as portrayed in the Human Development Report, underscores the task ahead and the need for a clear strategy for embarking on a long journey.
- Two recent reports reveal some important facets of India’s development. First, the Human Development Report 2023-24, published by the United Nations Development Programme, takes a comparative perspective and maps the achievements in the area of human development.
- Second, a paper published by the World Inequality Lab in March 2024 provides long-term trends in income and wealth inequality in India between 1922 and 2023.
- These reports do not reveal very encouraging trends on both fronts and can be used for future course corrections.
- More importantly, the evidence published is a significant guidepost for the forthcoming government, if it is to advance human capabilities and enhance the welfare of citizens, which are agendas of the major parties.
The delay in Nagaland civic body polls
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Prelims syllabus: Current events of national and international importance
- On April 30, Nagaland’s State Election Commissioner T.J. Longkumer notified the schedule of elections to the State’s Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) across three municipal councils — Dimapur, Kohima, and Mokokchung — and 36 town councils.
- The notification came four days after the Neiphiu Rio-led State Cabinet paved the way for holding civic polls stalled for 20 years because of opposition to the reservation of 33% of the wards reserved for women.
- The ULB polls are scheduled on June 26.
- Until the recent notification, Nagaland has been the only State where 33% of the seats or wards in the ULBs have not been reserved for women as mandated by clause IV of the 74th Amendment to the Constitution of India because of opposition from the Naga hohos (traditional apex tribal bodies) who argued that such a quota would violate the special provisions granted by Article 371A of the Constitution to Nagaland.
- The first and only civic body election in Nagaland was held in 2004 without any reservation of seats for women.
- The State government amended the 2001 Municipal Act in 2006 to include 33% reservation for women in line with the 74th Amendment.
- This triggered widespread opposition forcing the government to indefinitely postpone the ULB polls in 2009.
The socio-ecological effects of LPG price hikes
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GS 3: Indian Economy (Inflation)
- Data from the 2014-2015 ACCESS survey, conducted by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water, found LPG’s cost to be the foremost barrier to its adoption and continued use in rural poor households.
- Thus, 750 million Indians primarily use solid cooking fuels — wood, dung, agricultural residues, coal, and charcoal — every day. Solid cooking fuels are associated with innumerable health hazards and socio-economic and environmental impacts.
- The Indian government has often placed a premium on the cooking fuels in rural households transitioning to LPG.
- The Rajiv Gandhi Gramin LPG Vitrak scheme was launched in 2009 to increase LPG distribution in remote areas; nearly 45 million new LPG connections were thus established between 2010 and 2013.
- Direct benefit transfers for LPG under the ‘PAHAL’ scheme were initiated in 2015. In 2016, direct home-refill deliveries were implemented and the ‘Give it Up’ program enrolled around 10 million LPG consumers to voluntarily discontinue subsidies and transfer their accounts to below-poverty-line households.
- The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) followed, to install LPG connections in 80 million below-poverty-line households by 2020.
- The scheme also provides a subsidy of ₹200 for every 14.2-kg cylinder, which increased to ₹300 in October 2023.
India is now third largest producer of solar power
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GS 3: Indian Economy - Infrastructure – Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.
- In 2023, India overtook Japan to become the world’s third-highest producer of solar power, said a report by international energy analytics agency Ember on Wednesday.
- India generated 113 billion units (BU) of solar power in 2023 compared to Japan’s 110 BU.
- In terms of installed power capacity, which includes sources of renewable and non-renewable energy, India at 73 gigawatt ( 1 GW is one billion watts) ranks fifth in the world while Japan is at third place (83 GW), according to data computed by Ember.
NASA working out a time standard for the moon
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Prelims syllabus: Current events of national and international importance.
- In September 2025, NASA’s four-member Artemis crew is scheduled fly around the moon in preparation for the space agency’s mission to land on the moon again.
- To boost such scientific missions, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) on April 2, directed its space agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), to establish a Coordinated Lunar Time (LTC) to standardise cislunar operations with the universal time followed on Earth.
- Explaining the move, OSTP Deputy Director for National Security Steve Welby said, “A consistent definition of time among operators in space is critical to successful space situational awareness capabilities, navigation, and communications.”
